Hungry Hungry Hippo (Open)

Despite the nature of his body, Kyten had reservations about simply attacking people to grow stronger. He'd have no problem killing his creator's killer, nor have issues taking energy in self-defense. Or after a case of self-defense, as would be safer.

Practically, the random people of the world were too weak to empower him without mass murder, which would draw attention from those far more powerful than himself. While those closer in strength could help, that came with the issues of finding them and winning the battle. More importantly, he didn't want to kill or gravely injure other people without good reason.

The random small animals of earth fell far more into the more pragmatic side of his reservations. Most were too small and weak to grow meaningfully stronger from devouring, and it felt a waste of time to chase them down for that minimal reward they'd give.

None of these issues applied to the beasts of this jungle. They were large and decently strong, so the reward was worthwhile. They were aggressive and weren't intelligent enough for Kyten to care for their lives. Such was the case with the Tyrannosaurus, who he sat upon the neck of. It would have tried to eat him, at least if its roar and wild charge meant anything earlier. It hadn't expected him to maneuver to the back before he delivered a sudden, powerful kick to knock it to the ground. This had left it open.

It had tried madly flailing to pry the insectile boy from its back, but his claws and the darts from his hands held him in place as he drank the beast's energy in. That anger and aggression had given way as a combination of exhaustion and grim acceptance set in, the dinosaur largely immobile as it couldn't do anything to stop him. Kyten had spent a few minutes like this, sure to take all he could.

That thought was interrupted by the feeling of... something. A hard impact relatively nearby, and not the simple stomping of beasts. It didn't feel like these titans fighting, but he couldn't say for sure. There was little to gain from the fallen one, so he dislodged his arms and began to fly toward the source.

That source brought him to a humanoid figure dragging another dinosaur across the ground, bringing it over a fire to roast. It was best not to appear by surprise, so he asked a simple question to ensure the stranger was not caught off guard. "Hey, did you kill that?" He didn't mean any malice or doubt with the question. It was simply the first thing he could think to ask.

After a moment to ensure he was heard, Kyten flew closer. He didn't consider that his masked ki and bloodied hands could be seen as threatening, mostly because he didn't notice in either case

The boy's first answer confirmed he was the source of the blow. Kyten didn't think regular people would hunt here, especially alone. The boy didn't seem normal, but the Biodroid couldn't speak much about normalcy himself.

Immediately Kyten halted his approach as the boy took a defensive posture. His head tilted slightly, unsure what he did to frighten the boy until he spoke about how it was his food. "Oh, I'm not going to take it, don't worry! I was just checking since I felt something strong here." His smile remained a little too wide as he spoke, but he was sincere. In desperation, he probably would have been willing to steal the meat, though it wouldn't be his first priority in this case. That wasn't the case today. He had no need to steal anything right now, and that was all that mattered.

Though the stranger remained cautious of Kyten, he at least hadn't attacked him yet. That would have gone very badly for one of them, though Kyten had no way to know who. He hoped it would stay that way.

"Well, I still don't know much about you. I doubt most people can kill one of those beasts on their own and even fewer have a reason to visit this place. I can't exactly help my curiosity about that." He explained atop his perch; he could easily have been wrong in either case, but those were his assumptions. "Are you from around here, or are you just a visitor like I am?"

Though he didn't move from the branch, he did turn his head to better look around the jungle around him. Maybe their constant staring was a reason to be on edge, and he could at least stop staring for the moment. He was confident he'd know if he was attacked even without looking, and singular focus on the spiky-haired boy didn't gain him anything.

"I'm Kyten, by the way. You don't need to tell me your name if you don't want to." He offered with his gaze focused on a random bird in the distance. This person didn't seem to like talking much, given how curt he had been so far. Whether that attitude was for Kyten specifically was impossible to answer unless he was told. He hoped that wasn't the case and that he was simply this way with everyone.

Kyten nodded in agreement as he was told about the dinosaurs. "Yeah, I've seen that myself. I assume it must work for them most of the time, but it doesn't make them less stupid." He watched the bird continue to fly before it dipped down into the treeline, successfully hiding from his vision. If nothing else, his new approach allowed the boy to relax somewhat, if his decision to start eating was any indication. Or maybe the meat would have burnt if left much longer. The end result was the same, but he liked to think it was the approach.

"Plant." Kyten repeated, thinking about this new information over. While his question was intended to learn if the boy was native to the jungle, he hadn't considered he could be an alien. He'd assumed that the boy was human, but a good number of aliens looked human enough that it was an easy mistake to make. He knew of that planet's inhabitants, their typical traits, and that those inhabitants were at war the last the computer knew. Based on that knowledge, the boy was more likely a Saiyan than a Tuffle; that fit his unkempt appearance and general attitude better in his view. He was interested in what he was doing here and had a decent guess. Well, assuming nothing had changed anyway. "Were you trying to escape the war? Is the war still going on?"

Durian's question actually left him silent for a moment. He considered telling a believable lie but quickly decided there wasn't a point to that. There were likely those he should be less trusting of, but he saw no harm in honesty here. "I'm from a lab on this planet, closer to the north. I haven't been out long, so I don't know much about what's happening right now. I'm still trying to learn."

"Mostly that the war's gone on for a while. I don't know much beyond that." Kyten answered quickly. While he had been ready to assume his minimal information on the war was outdated, that conflict had already gone on for about forty years. It wasn't a surprise that the war was still ongoing. It was more surprising that Durian wished to return, but there were probably plenty of explanations. There was no reason to stop the boy from returning home, and he likely knew more about the situation than Kyten did.

While the question of his creation was something Kyten should have expected, the question still left him silent for a moment. Yet again, he briefly considered lying to the boy about what he knew. Yet again, after some thought, he chose honesty. "I was created by Doctor Cotes. I don't know why he made me or what he planned for me to do. He was killed years before I first woke up, and I was told his plan didn't matter after he died." There was a tinge of sadness as he spoke, his smile having shrunk into a more neutral expression. Not that it was likely Durian would see.

"In this jungle? Probably not, though I wouldn't know if they were here. I don't even know if they're on Earth." In truth, Kyten had no idea how he'd find this person. He'd probably need to find someone who knew better than him about that, though who that person would be and how he'd get them to help weren't issues he was planning to think about today.

While his previous answers were delayed by his thoughts, there was no hesitation this time. There were many issues with finding the killer, but Kyten already knew what he'd do when he did. "If I have the chance, I'll probably kill them. The doctor wanted me to avenge him. That's why I have to find his killer." He looked at a clawed hand as he opened and closed his grip. The only thing holding him back from certainty was that it was hypothetically possible something could give him a reason to stop. Though he had no realistic ideas that would, he had no reason to think it impossible. Not yet, anyway.

"I don't have a reason to hurt anyone else, so you don't have to worry!" Kyten's continued a bit too enthusiastically as he faced Durian, his smile again too wide for its own good. Though there was a reason for him to hurt other people, he wasn't that desperate for power now. So Durian didn't need to know; all it might achieve was scaring him again, and he didn't want that. "My mission doesn't have anything to do with me being here anyway, I just like exploring the Earth now that I have the chance."

"Hmm. I haven't thought about it much. I mean, I enjoy exploring and experiencing what Earth can offer. I'll need time to think about what else I like." He assumed he had that time. Kyten had always taken the lack of further commands to mean he could do whatever he wanted so long as he accomplished the Doctor's goal. The computers would have told him if he had to do anything else, after all. They even stressed not to rush, though mostly to ensure he was strong enough first. "I suppose I'd like to meet more people."

The boy's assertion confused him; why did he think the killer spared him? Nothing he had said so far indicated that. Was it simply because he was alive? "I was in a lab for years before I could wake up, and I only woke up recently. There were no signs that anyone found that lab during those years. I don't think that whoever killed the Doctor spared me. I don't think they know I exist."